A True Prince
by TheCookieMonster77
Summary: Because even when Hans is good, he still ends as the bad guy. AU


Chapter Title: A True Prince

Summary: Because even when Hans is good, he still ends as the bad guy.

**Disclaimer: I do not own Frozen.**

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><p>And swish goes the axe.<p>

Her head rolls off and her child cries out, already feeling the loss of the most important woman in his life. Her husband watches with red rimmed eyes, his face already a mask of regret and sorrow as he listens to his son cry out.

It didn't feel this bad when he had watched the other one die. No, he actually felt quite good about that death. Watching his rival's head roll into the basket soothed the wounds on his pride better than anything else could.

But watching her mouth the words 'I love you' to their young son in her final moments breaks his heart.

And swish goes the axe.

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><p>"<em>Oh Anna," Hans said gently. He cupped her head gently pulling her up so that he could see her warm blue eyes as he leaned down. Anna closed her eyes and he eagerly pressed his warm lips to her cool ones. Hans smiled wide as he looked down at her serene smile. "True love's kiss warms even the coldest of hearts." <em>

_Anna giggled at Hans's gentle teasing, her eyes twinkling. She sighed, stretching out a bit from her huddled position in his arms. He liked the idea that he brought warmth to her. _

_But, suddenly, Anna shrieked and curled up into a ball so fast she accidentally knocked her forehead on his chin. _

_He ignored his throbbing chin and clutched her closer. "Anna? Anna? Anna!" _

_Anna looked up from her fetal position and stared at him with dull eyes. "Why didn't it work?" she asked in a feeble voice. _

_Hans froze when the implication of what she said hit him. It didn't work. True love's kiss had failed. "I don't know, but I'm so, so sorry." Hans hugged her tighter in response to her violent shiver, biting his lip in hopes of preventing his shivers of fear. "I know I love you." _

"_I love you too," Anna said and despite the dire situation, he felt his heart soar. He shifted her a bit to make sure she was more comfortable, even as she clenched his arms and asked, "So why didn't the kiss work?" _

_He frowned in thought. Their situation was odd... "We must not have known each other for long enough." _

"_What does that have to do with true love!" _

_Hans dragged a hand through his hair, accidentally yanking out some of it. What else, what else? "I don't know. It is Elsa's curse and she didn't think we were truly in love. Maybe it's a form of love she has to recognize?" _

"_I don't think it works like that…" Anna bit her lip as she trailed off, a distant look in her eye. _

"_What else can you think of?" Hans asked, hoping she would look back at him. Otherwise...She looked dead. "Anna, I know it's stupid, but you mean so much to me. I can't lose you!" _

_Anna smiled tightly and even though he knew she was in pain, he was happy she was paying attention to him again. She gently brushed her fingertips along Hans's cheek, and he couldn't help but wince slightly as the icy tips dragged along his skin. "I wish Elsa didn't reject us. If she did, we all could have been living happily right now." _

"_No," he snarled. "Don't you dare give up. We'll figure out how to save you, no matter what!" He was not going to lose his precious Anna! _

_Anna snuggled into Hans and he reflexively tightened his grin. "What are we going to do?" she asked. _

_What to do, what to do? Hans abruptly stilled, as he came to a sudden conclusion. His face hardened, upset he was being forced into this position. "I have to kill her." _

_Anna stared at him with wide, desperate eyes. "What?" _

"_Love didn't work." Hans nodded, determined, and steeled himself for what was coming next. "The only way to save you is to kill Elsa." _

"_No!" Anna frantically gripped Hans's collar, nearly shocking him in her panic. "No, no, no, no, don't kill Elsa!" _

_He frowned down at her. "What else can we do?" _

"_She's my sister!" _

"_She tried to kill you." Hans gripped her shoulders, desperately trying to make her see reason. "And I'm going to do everything I can to make sure she doesn't succeed." _

"_Think of something else!" Anna pleaded, gripping Hans's collar. "Please, there has to be something else to can do." _

_Hans relaxed and leaned over to hug her close. At least one last hug... "I'm so sorry." _

_He abruptly let go of her, just barely escaping her groping fingers. Anna rolled off the couch and tried to crawl after him. He swiftly walked out of the room and locked the door, trapping her before she was even able to reach the door. _

"_No, Hans, don't! Please, please, please. Don't kill my sister!" she pleaded through the door. _

_Hans rested his forehead against the door, squeezing his eyes tight as he listened to her heartbroken pleas. "I'm sorry Anna, but I can't lose you." _

_He said one last silent goodbye and headed towards the other lords. _

_Things were about to get messy._

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><p>Hans winces as he looks over the fjord. He always feels the sharp pain of guilt whenever he looks overseas towards his homeland, but he's accepted that. He knows he deserves it.<p>

"Papa, why did you kill her? Why did she have to die?"

Hans looks down at his son's bright blue eyes (_her eyes_, his conscious whispers) and grimaces. "She was a dangerous woman, son. I had to save everyone when I still could."

His son snarls at him and he feels betrayed. He's always being punished for doing the right thing!

"Momma wasn't dangerous!"

Oh, _her_. Hans turns away from those accusing eyes (they've yet to ever stop accusing) and sighs. Her betrayal hasn't sunk in yet. Hans squeezes his eyes, willing no tears to fall. He's shed enough of those already. "She betrayed me. She faced justice for it."

"She didn't have to die! You had no right to kill her!"

Hans grits his teeth as the argument echoes one from long ago. "She committed one of the worse crimes, son. No woman should betray her family by having an affair."

"So? You didn't die when you betrayed her!"

"Enough!" he screams, because he feels bad enough. He needs no reminders. But as he looks over the fjord, he winces as the worst day of his life relives itself once more.

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><p><em>"Stop, just get away from me! Take care of my sister!" <em>

_"How?" They were both screaming at each other, and if either one could see past the blur of tears, they'd see that the other was just as incapacitated. "Please," he begged, "just stop the winter now!" _

_"I can't! I don't know how! I'll leave and get away as far as possible, just take care of my sister!" _

_He laughed bitterly, and somehow the sound managed to travel in the blasted blizzard. "She came down from the mountain weak. Her skin was ice, her hair was white! I tried to save her but it didn't work! For all I know she's dead right now!" _

_Hans held up his hands as the snow storm winds pushed against him. He hesitantly peeked through his hands to see that the snowstorm had literally stopped in its tracks, not a single snowflake moving. He looked down at the Queen's huddled figure, which was shaking like a leaf. Bile rose in his throat at the thought of killing someone so helpless, but he tramped it down. He had to do this, or else Anna might die. _

_He gritted his teeth and raised his sword up high. He felt his conscious stalling him, even as his heart so desperately urged him to save Anna. He closed his eyes, willing his hands to move. Every second she was alive, Anna had less chance to survive. _

_He squeezed his eyes shut and took a deep breath, and swung the sword down with a final swish. _

_He peeked through his eyes and nearly threw up at the red spreading everywhere. The image of Elsa laying helpless painted itself on the back of his eyelids and Hans felt the bile rise up and choke him. He heard his sword clatter on the melting ice but couldn't remember when he dropped it. _

_He finally couldn't stand the images his brain conjuring and opened his eyes to see the Queen's once beautiful body spread awkwardly in front of him. He had closed eyes when he killed her and it resulted in what looked to be a very painful beheading, the cut beginning at the top right side of her neck and continuing down into her left collarbone, bits of white, white bone poking out in the sea of red. _

_He curled in towards himself, choking and hacking bits of bile up. The image was almost more than he could bear because she was so helpless right before he killed her and he didn't even have the courtesy to watch as he committed the heinous deed. He bowed over, squeezing his eyes shut tight trying to block out the gruesome sight. _

_Anna, with a huge hulk of a man trailing behind her, found him sobbing by her sister's bloodied form five minutes later. He couldn't even look up when they announced that summer had returned. _

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><p>He should have known. He should've been able to see the revulsion in her eyes.<p>

Even as he heaves in the garden, the image of his headless wife falling replaying itself over and over, he realizes why his selfishness prevented him from ever seeing what was really going on.

He knew she was furious that he killed her sister, but he thought she had realized that he went to such desperate measures to save her. He thought she had forgiven him.

He never realized that she only stayed with him because she had no clue how to love someone or even recognize her love. He had no idea how much her advisors pushed her into a marriage with him so Arendelle could have a royal heir and someone to help her with her duties. He didn't realize that all those times he pushed her away because he needed some room, she saw them as forms of rejection. He never recognized her struggle to forgive him warring with her obligation to stay with him.

He thinks the worst thing is despite that he loved her, he was the one who pushed her away.

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><p><em>Hans looked up and smiled at his wife, who had just walked in. His smile slipped off his face when he saw her fidgeting and staring at the ground. He remembered yelling at her to give him some time earlier that day and he felt rampant of guilt for his previous actions. He didn't mean to yell at her, but she got so lonely and clingy and he just need a breather. He stood up and walked over to Anna and gently cupped her chin. "Darling, I'm sorry for snapping at you earlier." <em>

_Anna flinched and looked up at him with watery eyes. "Why did you say it?" _

_Hans cocked his head to the side, wondering what she was talking about. _

_Anna looked up at him and gulped. "Why did you say that you wished you didn't marry me?" _

_Hans flinched. "Oh Anna, I truly am sorry. I didn't mean it." _

_"Then why did you say it?" _

_Hans started at Anna's shout. She had always been so_ _quiet__ and reserved ever since he kil- Elsa died. "Look, I'm sorry. I truly didn't mean it, it just came out in the heat of the moment. I just...I'm so used to my bachelor lifestyle, that remembering to take care of a wife as well as myself can get overwhelming sometimes." _

_Anna yanked her chin out of his grip and angrily looked to the side. "So I'm a burden, huh?" _

_Hans cupped her cheeks and drew her face back to look at him. "No, no, darling, no. I wouldn't give you up for anything. None of its your fault, I'm just adjusting to my new lifestyle." _

_Anna eyes weren't getting any drier and Hans was feeling even worse. He gently brushed her tears away and kissed both of her cheeks. "Come on darling, you look like you've had a long day and are worn out. I'm sorry to be the one to ruin your day." _

_"It's fine. I went to the stables to get some fresh air and Kristoff was there to cheer me up." _

_Hans scowled at her casual mention of the ice harvester. "I don't like you associating with that man. I'm sorry darling, I know you said that he was your friend and a great help to you in the past but honestly, the man clings to you in the most ridiculous fashion. It's unbecoming behavior for a man like him and a woman of your stature." _

_Anna scowled at him. "Look, I agreed to marry you for Arendelle's stability and the guarantee of a royal heir, but I will not give up my friends." _

_"Darling, I'm sorry," Hans said soothingly. "I just get so jealous of thinking you being around other men." _

_Anna looked at him fearfully. "Are you saying you don't trust me?" _

_"No, of course not!" _

_Anna looked at him doubtfully. Hans sighed. "Darling, I'm sorry, I don't know what's gotten into me today. I just love so much, I don't ever want to risk you leaving me again. That day when you almost froze to death still haunts me." _

_"You mean the day you killed my sister," Anna whispered. _

_Hans flinched. "I'm sorry. I know it's not adequate, but I hope one day you'll truly forgive me, even if I can't forgive myself. I was so panicked over losing you that it looked like the only option. And it was, really," Hans mused, missing Anna's fleeting look of betrayal and anger. "But that's all in the past." Hans looked back down to his wife's face, still cradled in his hands. He gently stroked her cheeks and gently smiled. "I know it put a bit of a strain on our engagement and marriage, but I married you because I did and still do love you. Now, why don't we go to bed. As I said, you look rather drained. Unless you're up for trying for a heir again," he suggested roguishly with a grin. _

_Anna opened her mouth and looked like she was about to veto that idea, but she suddenly snapped her mouth shut and slowly nodded. _

_Hans's grin grew and he earthly ushered Anna to the bedroom. As he stripped his wife down, he ignored his instincts screaming that she didn't want it and refused to notice the bits of hay tucked into her clothes that never should have been there. _

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><p>Hans eagerly gulps from the bottle in his hand as he glares at his wedding portrait. What he once thought as a joyous occasion is now poison to him. He glares at the alcohol in his hand because it's clearly not doing it's job properly.<p>

Hans groans and slumps in his seat, drinking the remain drops as he wishes his beautiful wife's confession would stop haunting him. He thumps his head against the back of his seat as her endless accusations and admittances echo in his head.

Now that she's dead and his son's avoiding him, all he can do is reflect. And he _hates_ it.

All of his little dismissals, everything he brushed off as just errant thoughts caused from jealousy, haunt him. It would've been so _obvious_ if he had just _looked_.

Anna was only happy around Kristoff. She lost a spark for life when her sister died and though it never fully revived, it would come close to being reborn whenever she was with Kristoff or their son. How could he have missed that, especially when the spark _died_ when he was around?

His only consolation was that she assured him she didn't stray from his bed until his beautiful son was two. He knows she wouldn't lie about that. It's that consolation he clings to as he watches her son through the window as the sunlight causes his mother's eyes to sparkle and his yellow blonde hair to gleam. He watches his son's glee at yesterday's leftover snow and convinces himself he got that particular idiosyncrasy from his aunt. And as Hans watches his son set his jaw in a stubborn, familiar manner, he tells himself it's familiar because that same face looks at him in the mirror, not the face that would glare at him from a reindeer's side.

It's all he can cling to, even if he knows it's false.

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><p>AN: Funnily enough, I genuinely did try to write something with Hans as a good guy. But, it then became that and I apparently cannot write good!Hans at all because I still have him screw himself over.<p> 


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